Tilt GOOD- OLD DfliS fiPt 15fiCS the new format-even if most of theseCD player, this one promises to be that oflier conducted by Herbert von Karajan CDs are being offered at full price. Suchthe discs themselves-or, more precisely, and featuring Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, developments point unequivocally to thethe Christmas of the golden oldies. Christa Ludwig, and Teresa Stich -Randall medium's commercial success, a success Among the season's best greetings are a (CDCC 49354, three CDs). Accompany- that has come more quickly than the re-handful of classic opera recordings that ing it are the Schwarzkopf Capriccio, with cording industry expected. have been newly remastered for CD. Ludwig, Fischer-Dieskau, Nicolai Gedda, But for the dedicated discophile, it has Leading the list is the celebrated Furt- and Hans Hotter, conducted by Wolfgang seemed like an eternity. Until now, too wangler Tristan und Isolde from 1952, Sawallisch (CDCB 49014, two CDs); and many new recordings by second- or third- which has at long last been issued domesti- Karajan's magnificent stereo Salome, with rate interpreters have appeared automati- cally by Angel EMI (CDCD 47321, four Hildegard Behrens in the title role, joined cally on CD, while much that was first- CDs) after being available in Europe andby Agnes Baltsa, Jose Van Dam, and rate has slumbered in the vaults, awaitingJapan for more than a year. The cast-in- Wieslaw Ochman and accompanied by a the remastering producer's magic touch. cluding Ludwig Suthaus as Tristan and fired -up Vienna Philharmonic (CDCB Now at last, there is a steady stream of vin- Kirsten Flagstad as Isolde, both past their 49358, two CDs). tage stereo and golden -age mono record- prime, and the young Dietrich Fischer- Another top operatic offering is Colin ings appearing on the market, featuring Dieskau as Kurwenal, just short of his- Davis's superb account of Les Troyens on some of the century's most formidable art- may not have been ideal, but it certainlyPhilips (416 432-2, four CDs), featuring ists. And plenty more are in the pipeline. sounds good by today's standards. More Jon Vickers in the role of Aeneas. Davis's In short, the good old days-or, at least, important, Furtwangler's pacing is superb entire Berlioz cycle, one of the most signif- what is left of them on record-are back. and his grasp of Wagner's extraordinary icant recording projects of the stereo era, Less than a year ago [see "A Little Less musical architecture absolutely sure; his will be available on CD by the end of 1988; Noise," March], it was still possible to la- at present, titles reissued on CD include ment the seepage-and, in a few instances, La Damnation de Faust (416 395-2, two the flood-of mediocrity into the CD cata- CDs), L'Enfance du Christ (416 949-2, log, while simultaneously bemoaning the two CDs), the Requiem (416 283-2, two absence of key recordings by the likes of CDs), and Beatrice et Benedict (416 952-2, Wilhelm Furtwangler, Arturo Toscanini, two CDs), as well as Les Troyens. The Serge Koussevitzky, Thomas Beecham, sound on these recordings, most of which Herbert von Karajan, George Szell, Istvan date from the late '60s and early '70s, is ex- Kertesz, John Barbirolli, and Jean Mar- cellent, and Philips has provided full notes tinon. It was easy to find almost anything and texts for the operas (omitting, for played or conducted by Vladimir Ashken- unknown reasons, the cast of Les azy, little of it that good-but not a single Troyens). For the Francophile and vocal disc of Van Cliburn or Sergei Rachmani- enthusiast, any of these sets will make a noff (or, for that matter, of William Ka- welcome gift, especially Les Troyens. pell, Wilhelm Kempff, or Geza Anda). Lovers of Puccini's La Boheme are There was Domingo and Pavarotti aplen- faced with a difficult choice between two ty, but no Bjorling; Hermann Baumann splendid accounts of the work, both bril- but no Dennis Brain; the Hagen Quartet Wilhelm Furtwangler's celebrated "7 nstatz und liantly conducted, magically sung, and ex- but no Quartetto Italiano. All that has Isolde" was long overdue in the CD catalog. ceptionally well recorded. The classic changed. It's hard to say whether this is Thomas Beecham performance on Angel because CD pressing capacity has in- conducting transmits the poignancy and EMI (CDCB 47235, two CDs), with Vic- creased dramatically in the past year or be- profound emotion of the score as convinc- toria De Los Angeles and Jussi Bjorling in cause executives at some of the major la- ingly as has ever been managed on record. the lead roles, is one of the most successful bels have taken this long to get their The sound is remarkably good, particular- opera recordings in history and has been a priorities straight. In all likelihood, it has ly in the naturalness of the orchestral bal-treasure of the LP catalog for 30 years. It to do with both, but the inescapable bot- ance. Still, some listeners may object to has stood up fairly well to remastering, tom -line fact is that artists like Maria Cal- what appears to be a subtle rechanneling though careful comparison of the LP and las, Jascha Heifetz, and Fritz Reiner (and, of the loudest passages to create the effect CD versions makes one suspect that there in the pop and jazz fields, John Coltrane, of an enhanced soundstage that, in places has been an unfortunate filtering of the Frank Sinatra, and the Beatles) are help- like the climax of the first -act prelude, high end in order to remove tape hiss. In ing many record stores pay their rent. And verges on a stereo spread. While this may contrast, Herbert von Karajan's 1972 Bo- the suppliers are finally recognizing what unsettle some listeners used to true mono, heme-with Mirella Freni and Luciano the consumer wants and are beginning to others may feel even more drawn into the Pavarotti the leads, backed by the Berlin provide it. experience. In any case, few recordings ofPhilharmonic-sounds better than ever; Late -summer visits to Orpheus Re- any era capture the spirit of a work and re- in fact, it sounds absolutely extraordinary, markable Recordings and J&R Music veal the artistry of great interpreters as and Karajan and the Berlin are at their World in New York, which both cater to consistently as this one does. For the per- best. One of the recent releases in Lon- serious CD buyers, confirmed that a num- fect Wagnerite, this Tristan comes close to don's ADRM series (421049-2, two CDs), ber of important new releases, most of being the perfect gift. it features newly written program notes them reissues, were already on the shelves, On its heels, Angel EMI has releasedand a handsomely produced libretto and is with a great many others expected by the three sets that should bring joy to thea model of how CD reissues ought to be beginning of the holiday buying season. Ifhearts of all who love Strauss's operas. handled. last Christmas was the Christmas of the First is the classic mono Der Rosenkava- Of the major labels, Angel EMI was

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